Students fed up with parking price increase

Ara Institute of Canterbury students are frustrated that the price of parking in the campus student car parks has risen from last year.

The two city campus car parks in Christchurch both cost $2 per day in 2016, but as of January 1 this year the price has doubled, costing students $4 a day, adding up to $20 a week for parking.

Student Brynee Wilson is far from impressed that Ara has raised these prices. Students were already struggling financially, and parking was an extra cost to consider, she said.

“There’s little student car parks as it is. Paying $4 a day has turned out to be very very expensive.”

Students in New Zealand get $170 a week from their student loans, take $20 off this for parking per week, and they are left with just $150 to pay other costs such as rent, food and general living expenses.

“I don’t see what they're getting at because students are broke as it is so why do they think that we can afford $4 a day, I don’t know,” Wilson said.

Ara’s Parking Coordinator Kevin Park said the reason for the increase in price was due to updating parking machines and installing credit card facilities for students to use.

“Believe it or not, it has been one hundred times more expensive than I ever thought it would be.”

Student Brynee Wilson was hoping Ara would bring the price of parking back down. Park said this was unlikely to happen.

“Prices only go up and never go down in my experience,” Park said.

Ara recommend carpooling as an option to save money and reduce congestion, which is an option students may have to turn to if they want to get to school in a more cost efficient way.